Plug valve with storage compartment

ABSTRACT

A rotary plug valve including a valve body open at one or both axial ends and having a bore with a lateral inlet port and a lateral outlet port communicating with the bore on opposite sides thereof. A plug is provided in the bore having a passage which communicates with the inlet and outlet ports in the open position of the valve. Removable sealing means are provided between the bore and the plug for preventing leakage between the inlet and outlet ports and to the outside of the valve. The plug has an opening extending axially inwardly from one or both ends thereof corresponding to the open end or ends of the valve body. The openings are normally closed by closure plugs and serve as storage compartments for replacement parts of the valve. In some forms of the invention a valve operating handle can be threaded into a hole in either closure plug or into a storage compartment itself to serve as an aid in seating or unseating the plug in the valve body.

[76] Inventor:

United States Patent Wurzburger PLUG VALVE WITH STORAGE COMPARTMENT PaulD. Wurzburger, 3255 E. Monmouth Rd., Cleveland, Ohio 44118 22 Filed:Dec. 4, 1972 211 Appl. No.: 311,845

5/1964 Goldman et a1. 251/309 Primary Examiner-Edgar W. GeogheganAssistant Examiner-D. R. Matthews Attorney-Frederic M. Bosworth et a].

[ 1-1] I 51 Jan. 8, 1974 ABSTRACT A rotary plug valve including a valvebody open at one or both axial ends and having a bore with a lateralinlet port and a lateral outlet port communicating with the bore onopposite sides thereof. A plug is provided in the bore having a passagewhich communicates with the inlet and outlet ports in the open positionof the valve. Removable sealing means are provided between the bore andthe plug for preventing leakage between the inlet and outlet ports andto the outside of the valve. The plug has an opening extending axiallyinwardly from one or both ends thereof corresponding to the open end orends of the valve body. The openings are normally closed by closureplugs and serve as storage compartments for replacement parts of thevalve. 1n some forms of the invention a valve operating handle can bethreaded into a hole in either closure plug or into a storagecompartment itself to serve as an aid in seating or unseating the plugin the valve body.

6 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures PATENTEB JAN 81974 SHEET 1 0F 2 PATENTED JAN8 i974 SHEET 2 BF 2 PLUG VALVE WITH STORAGE COMPARTMENT BACKGROUND OFTHE INVENTION This invention relates to rotary plug valves and moreparticularly to a plug valve having a storage cavity or compartment forthe storage of replacement parts and the like. I

A typical rotary plug valve includes a valve body having a bore formedtherein and inlet and outlet ports leading to and from the bore. A plugisarranged in the bore so as to be rotatable between a closed positionin which the inlet and outlet ports are sealed off from one another andan open position in which the ports are placed in communication througha passage or the like in the plug. The plug and the bore are generallyeither tapered or cylindrical. In somevalves sealing means are providedin the clearance between the plug and bore to prevent leakage from theinlet to the outlet port and to the outside of the valve. Other valvesrely upon a close fit between the plug and the walls of the bore toprevent leakage between the inlet and outlet port s. These latter valvesusually require lubricant between the mating surfaces to minimize wearand the effort required to rotate the plug.

A typical sealing means for the first mentioned type of valve is anelastomeric ring such as an O-ring which is seated in a groove in theperiphery of the plug or in' the wall of the bore. O-rings may beprovided at opposite axial ends of the plug to prevent leakage to theoutside of the valve and also intermediate the plug ends to preventleakage from the inlet to the outlet port in the closed position of thevalve.

The O-rings are subject to wear during operation of the valve because offriction and rubbing against the adjacent wall of the bore or peripheryof the plug. ring seals may also lose their elasticity after prolongedexposure to certain controlled fluids or to contaminants in the fluids.O-rings tend to lose their effectiveness as seals for these and otherreasons and must be replaced from time to time to assure reliableoperation of the valve. inevitably, when a replacement O-ring is needednone is at hand and a valve may be kept out of operation for an undulylong period while an O-ring of the proper size and characteristics islocated.

Similarly, lubricant in valves requiring it must be replenishedoccasionally to ensure reliable and trouble free operation of the valve.The proper lubricant, like the proper O-ring is often not readilyavailable when needed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A general object of this invention is toprovide a rotary plug valve which includes a. compartment for thestorage of spare parts and the' like.

Another object is to provide such a valve in which the storagecompartment is accessible without taking the valve out of operation.

Still another object is to provide a rotary plug valve having dualstorage compartments both of which are readily accessible without takingthe valve out of operation.

Another object is to provide such a valve in which a storage compartmentis provided in the plug and which includes means engageable in thestorage compartment to assist in removing the plug from the bore.

A preferred form of valve according to the present invention includes avalve body open at one axial end and having a bore with a lateral inletport and a lateral outlet port communicating with the bore on oppositesides thereof. A plug is provided in the bore and has a passage whichcommunicates with the inlet and outlet ports in the open position of thevalve. The plug has an opening extending axially inwardly from the endthereof corresponding to the open end of the valve body and means areprovided for normally closing the opening. The opening serves as astorage compartment for replacement parts for the valve.

In one form of the invention the storage opening is threaded and athreaded closure plug is provided for closing it. The valve is providedwith an operating handle which is removable and, in this form of theinvention and according to another aspect thereof, is engageable withthe threads of the storage compartment or with a threaded hole providedin the closure plug so that the handle can be employed to aid inremoving the rotary plug from the valve body or inserting it therein.

Where the valve body is open at both axial ends a readily accessiblestorage compartment can be provided in each end of the plug.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevational view,partly in section, of a valve embodying the present invention, the valvebeing shown in the open position.

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 with the valve shown inthe closedposition and prepared for disassembly.

FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the valve on the line 33 ofFIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of an alternateform of valve embodying the present invention, the valve being shown inthe closed position and prepared for disassembly.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring initially to FIGS. 1to 3, a first form of valve embodying the present invention includes avalve body '10 having an axially extending cylindrical bore 12 which isopen at both ends. A plug 14 is seated in the bore. A lateral inlet port15 and a lateral outlet port 16 communicate with the bore 12 on oppositesides thereof. Ports l5, 16 are axially offset for reasons that willappear below. Ports l5, l6 communicate at their ends opposite bore 12with inlet and outlet connections in the form of threaded sockets 18,.19. The top part of valve body 10 is cylindrical and has an arcuateguide slot 23 in its outer wall. Slot 23 extends through substantiallyand defines an operating path for a plug operating handle. Recesses 26,27 are provided in the wall of bore 12 adjacent its top and bottom endsand conventional wiper rings 29, 30 are seated therein to bearresiliently against the periphery of plug '14 and prevent contaminantssuch as dirt and the like from entering the valve. A passage 32 isprovided in the valve body between the inlet socket l8 and bore 12 whichserves a purpose described below.

Plug 14 has an axially central sealing portion 14a which has a close fitwith bore 12 and has an upper portion 14b and a lower portion which arereduced very slightly in diameter from sealing portion 14a. Both upperportion 14b and lower portion 14c are provided with axially extendingopenings 35, 35a, respectively, having threads 37, 37a at theirrespective open ends. Closure plugs 39, 39a are threaded into openings35,

35a. Each closure plug 39, 39a has a threaded hole 40,

40a, respectively, extending axially from its top surface. The openings35, 35a serve as convenient and readily accessible storage compartmentsfor spare valve parts such as sealing rings as described below.

The upper portion 14b of the plug also has a tapped hole 42 in itscylindrical surface inclined upwardly at a slight angle toward theperiphery of the plug as shown in FIG. 1. A combined plug operatinghandle, plug retaining means and plug removing means 45 extends throughslot 23 in the cylindrical portion 21 of the valve body and intothreaded engagement in hole 42. Operating handle 45 can be rotatedthrough the limits defined by slot 23 to rotate plug 14 from one to theother of the open and closed positions of the valve.

The limits of sealing portion 14a of plug 14 are defined by annulargroove 53, 54 in the plug in which are seated O-ring seals 56 and 57 andconventional backup rings 56a and 57a. These O-rings provide a sealbetween the plug and the bore to prevent leakage of fluid from eitheropen end of the valve. Located axially inwardly of the respective endO-rings 56 and 57 are pressure distributing grooves 59, 60 which ensurethat controlled fluid and its pressure is distributed completely aboutthe periphery of plug 14. Normally, there will be sufficient clearancebetween plug 14 and bore 12 to permit fluid to distribute itself in theclearance.

Grooves 59 and 60, however, facilitate and add to such 1 distribution.The passage 32 between inlet socket 18 and bore 12 opens in the bore insubstantial alignment with distributing groove 59 to permit the passageof fluid directly thereto. From the groove the fluid can flow axiallydownwardly in the clearances between plug and bore. The lowerdistributing groove 60 is positioned to intersect lateral outlet port 16and no passage is necessary to ensure that fluid is provided to thegroove.

A slanted passage 65 extends through the sealing portion 14a of the plugwith its central axis intersecting the longitudinal axis of plug 14. Theupper end of passage 65 is at the same axial height as inlet port 15 andthe lower end of passage 65 is at the same axial height as outlet port16. In the open position of the valve shown in FIG. 1 passage 65connects inlet port 15 with outlet port 16. In the closed position ofthe valve, passage 65 is substantially at right angles to inlet port 15and outlet port 16.

Flow sealing means generally indicated at 67 is provided between plug 14and bore 12 to prevent leakage of fluid between the inlet and outletports in the-closed position of the valve. Flow sealing means 67 followsa cyclical path having peaks that extend alternately above and below oneof the ports l5, 16, preferably inlet port 15. Corresponding incrementsof different cycles of the path lie diametrically opposite each other.As a result, the path defines equal areas between itself and each of theend sealing O-rings 56, 57 at diametrically opposite portions of theplug surface. The areas on the upstream and downstream sides of the plugthat can be acted upon by fluid pressure are thus equalized and theforces acting on the plug will be balanced. The path of the flow sealingmeans in the closed position of the valve is between the inlet port andthe outlet port to prevent leakage therebetween.

The flow sealing means is carried by the plug 14 in the form of asinuous annular groove 69 which completes two full repetitive cyclesabout the periphery of the plug, and an O-ring 70 seated in the groove.The flow sealing means and its operation and effect are described fullyin my copending application filed concurrently with this application andentitled Pressure- Balanced Plug Valve.

It will be noted that the valve body 10 is open at both ends and thatthe plug 14 extends outwardly a slight distance from each end. No cap,plug or similar means is provided at either end of the valve body tosupport and retain the plug therein. In place of an end cap or the likethe plug is retained in the bore by operating handle 45 passing throughslot 23 as described in my copending application filed concurrently withthis application and entitled Plug Valve With Combined Plug Operating,Retaining And Removal Means.

According to the present invention, the plug 14 is provided with theopenings 35, 35a extending axially from each end surface. Openings 35,35a are each of a length and diameter enabling them to serve as storagecompartments for spare parts for the valve. The most likely requiredreplacement parts are the flow sealing O-ring 70 and the end O-rings 56and 57 for a valve employing O-rings. In the case of valves notemploying O- rings but requiring lubricant it may be advantageous tostore a small tube or the like of lubricant in a storage compartment.The storage compartments 35, 35a allow replacement O-rings, lubricant ora similar accessory to be immediately available when needed without thenecessity of keeping the valve out of operation while a search isconducted for the needed article of the proper characteristics. It isadvisable, of course, to replace the O-ring or other article taken fromthe compartment 35 but this can be done after the valve has-beenreturned to service and without in any way interfering with itsoperation.

It is also desirable to store, for the valve illustrated, at least oneeach of end O-rings 56 and 57. Preferably, a replacement is stored foreach end O-ring and the 0- rings are replaced simultaneously. It may, ofcourse, be found desirable to store replacement parts or articles otherthan those specifically mentioned or in addition thereto or to storeitems which are useful in the maintenance of the valve or associatedequipment. The items stored can vary according to particular needs. Itwill be apparent that a storage compartment can be provided in only oneend of the plug 14 if that is desired.

According to another aspect of this invention operating handle 45serves, in cooperation with threaded holes 40, 40a in closure plugs 39,39a, as a plug removal or insertion means. If it is desired todisassemble the valve or remove the plug from the valve body for anyreason, such as to replace or inspect an O-ring or wiper ring, it isfirst necessary to remove operating han- I dle 45 from its threadedengagement with tapped hole 42 in the plug. This allows the plug to beremoved from the valve body. Friction between the O-rings and the wallof the bore may, however, hold the plug in the bore and resist its beingremoved therefrom. To overcome the friction, operating handle 45 may bethreaded into either hole 40 or 40a and employed to push or pull theplug 14 out of the valve body. The operating handle also provides aconvenient tool for insertion of the plug into the valve body. Thethreads of holes 40, 40a and threads 37 and 37a of openings 35, 35a areof the same sign, right hand or left hand, to prevent unscrewing of aclosure plug 39, 39a as operating handle 45 is threaded into hole 40 or40a.

F l6. 4 shows an alternative form of valve embodying the presentinvention in which operating handle 45 is adapted to be threadeddirectly into storage compartments 35, 35 'a after the closure plug suchas 39'a has been removed. To disassemble the valve, operating handle 45is removed from its threaded engagement with the tapped hole in the plugand, after a closure plug is removed, is threaded into the appropriatestorage compartment as shown in FIG. 4 to assist in removing the plugfrom the valve body as described above. Operating handle 45 when fullythreaded into a storage compartment extends therein only to about thesame depth as the closure plug so that ample room remains below thehandle for stored articles and the articles are in no way affected bythe insertion of the operating handle. The remaining parts of the valveof FIG. 4 is essentially the same as in the valve of FIGS. 1 to 3 andare identified by the same reference numerals.

The closure plugs 39, 39a, 39'a may be made of metal or of plastic. Whenthe closure plugs are provided with the holes 40, 40a it is preferredthat they be made of metal such as steel. When not provided with theholes 40, 400 the closure plugs are preferably made of plastic for lightweight and economy. The plastic plugs may be color coded to enable quickidentification of the contents of the storage compartment or of the sizeor other characteristics of the parts stored therein. Also, the plasticplugs may be snapped 0r friction fitted into the storage openings ratherthan threaded therein.

While a preferred and an alternate form of the present invention havebeen specifically described herein it will be apparent to those skilledin the art that modifications and improvements may be made to theformsdisclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention. In particular, it will be apparent that the principles of thestorage compartment and plug removal means can be employed in plugvalves other than those specifically described herein. Accordingly, thisinvention is not to be limited to the forms herein specificallydisclosed nor in any other way inconsistent with the progress in the artpromoted by the invention.

What is claimed is: A y, nl aayal mgrieinae sl 29? storage compartment.

2. A valve according to claim 1 wherein said opening is threaded andsaid closure means is a threaded clos eplpg adapted to be threaded intosaid opening.

3. A valve according to claim 1 wherein said valve body is open at bothaxial ends and including a second opening extending axially inwardlyfrom the end of said plug adjacent said other open end of said valvebody, said opening forming a second storage compartment for replacementparts of said valve, and means closing said second storage compartment.7

4. A valve according to claim 1 including a valve operating handle forrotating said plug from one to the other of the open and closedpositions of the valve, said operating handle being removable andengageable in I said storage compartment to aid in removing said plug fjaltttlvelfidyt 5. A valve according to claim 4 wherein said storagecompartment opening and said operating handle are correspondinglythreaded to enable said operating handle to be engaged in said opening.V g V 6. A valve according to claim 1 including a valve operating handlefor rotating said plug from one to the other of the open and closedpositions of the valve and wherein said storage compartment closuremeans is a closure plug provided on its outer end with a hole adapted toreceive the end of said operating handle toenable said operating handleto serve as a removal aid for removing said plug from said bore.

1. A rotary plug valve comprising a valve body open at one axial end and having a bore with a lateral inlet port and a lateral outlet port communicating with said bore on opposite sides thereof, a plug in said bore having a passage, the ends of which register and communicate with said inlet and outlet ports, respectively, in the open position of the valve, said plug having an opening extending axially inwardly from the end thereof corresponding to the open end of said valve body, said opening serving as a storage compartment for replacement parts of said valve, and means normally closing said storage compartment.
 2. A valve according to claim 1 wherein said opening is threaded and said closure means is a threaded closure plug adapted to be threaded into said opening.
 3. A valve according to claim 1 wherein said valve body is open at both axial ends and including a second opening extending axially inwardly from the end of said plug adjacent said other open end of said valve body, said opening forming a second storage compartment for replacement parts of said valve, and means closing said second storage compartment.
 4. A valve according to claim 1 including a valve operating handle for rotating said plug from one to the other of the open and closed positions of the valve, said operating handle being removable and engageable in said storage compartment to aid in removing said plug from said valve body.
 5. A valve according to claim 4 wherein said storage compartment opening and said operating handle are correspondingly threaded to enable said operating handle to be engaged in said opening.
 6. A valve according to claim 1 including a valve operating handle for rotating said plug from one to the other of the open and closed positions of the valve and wherein said storage compartment closure means is a closure plug provided on its outer end with a hole adapted to receive the end of said operating handle to enable said operating handle to serve as a removal aid for removing said plug from said bore. 